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Trincomalee

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#1 · (Edited)


Trinco is a port city on the east coast of Sri Lanka, it houses the 5th largest natural harbour in the world and is located about 110 miles northeast of Kandy. The city is built on a peninsula, which divides the inner and outer harbours. It is one of the main centers of Tamil speaking culture on the island. Historically referred to as Gokanna or Gokarna it has been a sea port that has played a major role in maritime and international trading history of Sri Lanka.
 
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#2 · (Edited)



The Bay of Trincomalee's harbour is renowned for its large size and security; unlike every other in the Indian Ocean, it is accessible to all types of craft in all weathers. The beaches are used for surfing, scuba diving, fishing and whale watching. The city also has the largest Dutch fort in Sri Lanka. It is home to major Sri Lankan naval bases and a Sri Lankan Air Force base. Described by Admiral Horation Nelson of the British Navy as the "finest harbour in the world".
 
#3 · (Edited)
The Harbour

The great European powers vied with one another for the mastery of the harbor. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the French and the English, each held it in turn, and many a sea fight was staged off the cliffs of Trincomalee. Of all harbors in the East, it can be said that it is largely today as Nature endowed it.



Trincomalee was the British naval headquarters in the Pacific theater and had an airfield from which U.S. planes operated against the Japanese in Myanmar and Malaya. Trincomalee was later attacked by Japanese bomber planes in 1942. A British naval base remained at Trincomalee until 1957, when Sri Lanka abrogated its defense agreement with Britain and took over the base.


1910


1950's (note the oil tanks and the runway, used as Air Force Base now)

A British Navy Frigate was named HMS Trincomalee in the 19th Century signalling the importance of the port to the British, it is the oldest British warship still to be afloat
 
#4 · (Edited)
The Temple of a Thousand Pillars


(The much newer temple on the same site built in the 1960's after a lapse of some 380 years)

On the summit of the Rock, known as the Swami Rock or the Three Swami Rock, was the “temple of unusual size and splendor, renowned through the whole of India,” the temple which was razed to the ground and despoiled by the Portuguese in 1624.

It was New Years day of 1624 in Thirukoneswaram. The temple had one thousand pillars and, at that time, esteemed to be one of the richest temples in Southeast Asia. It had in its possession large amounts of gold, pearls, precious stones, and silk, which has been endowed over one thousand years.

 
#5 ·
New Years Morning 1624, the temple was decorated and well lit with eleven oil lamps for the New Year's worship and pooja (form of worship) observances. After the pooja, the customary festival procession proceeded out to the town with a crowd of worshippers.

At this time, Portuguese emissaries and soldiers gained entrance into the temple disguised as Hindu priests. They overpowered the few temple priests and workers who remained in the temple and looted the temple. All the possessions, treasured over a thousand years were carried away.

In the confusion, the few devotees, who escaped, carried away temple belongings they were able to take. These were the articles that were unearthed several years after in 1950 and now form part of the newly built Thirukoneswaram temple. The deities taken in procession were beyond the reach of the vandals and were placed in safety at other temples.

Towards the evening, Portuguese Commander Constantine de Sa delivered an ultimatum to the temple priest. It said that everything valuable in the temple should be surrendered to him at dawn of the following day as he will fire cannons from the ship at the Trincomalee sea and blast the temple down.


(Devotees at Swami Rock in 1935, before the new temple was built)
 
#6 · (Edited)
Unfortunately they could not save the temple and of great importance was a monument dedicated to God Shiva that was left behind in the temple, called the "Shiva Lingam", a long spherical monument.

Like many other objects that were recovered by divers in the early 20th century, the "Lingam" was recovered by Mike Wilson who discovered it by accident while shooting a film.



It was returned to the temple, it is one of the few remaining 69 "Lingam's" in the Sub Continent.

The destruction was so overwhelming that objects hurriedly hidden, or submerged under the debris or consigned to the sea, continue to be revealed from time to time. A total of 7 Statues depicting Lord Shiva and his wife Parvati have been found by undersea explorers, all have been returned to the temple. Undersea explorers have recently taken submarine photographs of the place, and incidentally discovered the remains of the ancient Hindu temple deep down near the seabed.
 
#7 ·
One striking thing that stands out in some of the photos of Swami Rock or Fredrick Fort is the stone monument shown below:





There are many theories regarding it which brings us to the next bit of history in Trinco
 
#8 · (Edited)
Lover's Leap

The debate rages as to whether it is a monument to a tragic love affair of the seventeenth century, or something simple, unromantic and for a practical purpose. Whatever said or thought you will no doubt see it standing a silent sentinel on the side of the Sri Koneswarnam temple. You will, no doubt, be touched by its aloofness as it broods almost absently into the distant ocean. What day and age does it represent and what memories does it recall? If only pillars could talk.



Legend has it that the ornate pillar was erected by a broken hearted Dutch father in memory of his daughter who committed suicide after being abandoned by her lover. It is believed that she leapt off the rock into the swirling sea below, in the path of the ship that was taking her lover, a young Dutch officer, away. Hence the spot was popularly referred to as ‘Lovers Leap

 
#9 ·
BUT that theory was dashed because there is a historical record that the stone pillar erected on this spot is supposed to have borne the Dutch inscription - Erected in memory of Francina Van Rhede in 1687, but the pillar which is there now does not bear any such inscription. and also a book titled " history of Trincomalee" proves that the woman in question lived on and actually married again and this brings us to the only probable conclusion that is also one of the theories, which is that the pillar is part of one of the thousand pillars that made up the original temple.
 
#10 ·
Fort Fredrick

The Portuguese built a fort at Trincomalee in 1624, at the base of a high rock, which is called Swami Rock today.
The stones from the "Temple of a thousand pillars" were used to build the fort.
In 1639 the Dutch attacked it with a fleet of 12 ships under Admiral Westerwold, and captured it. The Portuguese fort was rebuilt but later abandoned. Only in 1665 a new fort was built in its place, when it became clear the British and the French were interested in this east coast harbour. In 1672, the year when the Dutch Republic was attacked by France, Britain, and two German states, the French captured Trincomalee.

 
#11 · (Edited)
At the end of the 18th century Trincomalee again experienced a quick and interesting change of occupiers. Early in January 1782 the fort was captured by the British. During the same year the French repeatedly attacked the British at Trincomalee, and in August they managed to capture the fort. At the Peace of Paris in 1784 the French returned Trincomalee to the VOC (Dutch East India Company) again.

Twelve years later, in 1795, the British arrived in Ceylon again for their final takeover. The first fort they chose to capture was Trincomalee.

The Trincomalee fort however is in good shape. It is occupied by the army and air force and although you are allowed to visit it, you cannot take photographs. It covers a large area on a hilly outcrop, surrounded by high walls. Inside are various buildings and barracks, some of which date from the British time, and a parade ground. Everywhere are large trees which throw their shade on the lanes that sometimes pass old tombs with faded inscriptions among the dry bushes.


Circled in red is Fort Fredrick in Swami Rock and in Black is where the naval base used by the British is located, now used by Sri Lanka Navy as Eastern HQ,


(seen in the map circled in purple, airfield and oil tanks used by Allied troops in WWII, later bombed by the Japanese on April 8 1942, now used by Sri Lanka Air Force as a Major base)

Sorry about the old photos...
 
#21 ·
thanks for sharing these information and photo about Trinco. its a wonderful town with many natural and historic attractions but sadly underutilised by the Sri Lankan government. I went to the town about a month ago and though the town is recovering and growing I didn't see any major projects like in Hambantota. I took some photos of trinco. I' need to resize them and upload them. I'll post them here when I'm done
 
#22 ·
#23 ·
Trinco’s hot wells, forts, beaches, Koneswaram Kovil and dosa

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This year was my first trip to Trincomalee (pop. 99,135), the administrative centre of the Eastern Province occupying an area of 750 hectares spreading outward from the peninsula that intrudes between the Back Bay and the inner harbour. It doubles as a scenic seaside resort area that also serves as an economic and military hub for Sri Lanka. Its two deep-water natural harbours—inner and outer—provide the port facilities for the country’s exports and imports, and the naval facilities for the country’s security. No wonder that the European invaders wanted to control it since the 16th century because of its strategic location.

We arrived in Trincomalee city on a hot Saturday (April 6) afternoon from Polonnaruwa —a distance of 113 km—along the northeast running Kandy-Trinco Road, which we reached by first heading northwest to Hatares Kotuwa on the Gal Oya-Minneriya Road.
Amal, our driver, decided to show us two attractions before dinner and nightfall. He did not want to waste the time and the gasoline to take us back and forth to the beach hotel we had reserved for the night more than 18 kilometres to the north.

Historic Koneswaram

So, our introduction to Trinco began with a stopover in front of Fort Frederick from where we had to walk up to the magnificent Koneswaram Kovil, which the Europeans called the Temple of the Thousand Pillars, the exact origin of which is yet unknown although the extant evidence has established its workmanship to contain features of classical antiquity. The shrine is on Swami Rock (Konamalai), 107 metres above sea level. From this elevation, the multi-layered shrine complex offers awesome views of the Indian Ocean below through what is aptly called the Lovers’ Leap or Ravana’s Cleft.

The temple requires the visitors to enter the shrine barefooted irrespective of the season. Thus, April is not the best time to explore Hindu and Buddhist historical sites in the lowlands of Sri Lanka because this custom has increased suffering (dukkha) among folks who burn their feet by walking barefooted on scorched earth.


Temple of the thousand pillars: Koneswaram Kovil, Trincomalee
We entered the shrine through its partially restored decorated gateway. We learned that the Portuguese attacked and destroyed the temple on April 14, 1662—the Hindu New Year’s Day. The Dutch prohibited the performance of any religious ceremonies on Swami Rock. The restoration work on the temple began only in the 1950s. The Hindu Tamil interpretation of the history of Koneswaram is not consistent with that of the Buddhist Sinhalese.

Whatever the history of Koneswaram may be, we enjoyed the sea and landscapes of Trincomalee that it enabled us to see from each layer of the temple.

Two forts and two ports

After absorbing the scenery from the temple, we went back to our vehicle parked in front Fort Frederick at the foot of Swami Rock/ Pagoda Hill to mull over the fort’s history.

The original fort that the Portuguese built in 1625 on this spot overlooking Trincomalee’s outer harbour was dismantled by the forces of King Rajasinghe II (1635-1687) in 1643 after the Dutch captured the fort in 1639 and handed it over to the Kandyans with whom the Dutch had formed an alliance.

Subsequently, the Dutch built two forts in the 1660s. The first was Fort Frederick at the foot of the promontory, which they called Pagoda Hill (where we had parked). The second was Fort Ostenburg, which they built on a ridge at the mouth of the inner harbour as a facility for the Dutch officers. The British gained control of the Dutch forts in January1782, but the French captured them in August of the same year. Next, the British took control again in 1795 and held them until Ceylon gained independence.

Today, Fort Frederick remains garrisoned by a detachment of the Gajaba Regiment of the Sri Lankan army, but the facility is accessible to the public.

Now turned into the Hoods Tower Museum by the Sri Lanka Navy, Fort Ostenburg contains a collection of weapons, equipment and weapon systems used by the navy. “Prizes of War” on display include captured Sea Tiger attack crafts, suicide crafts and LTTE weapons, including an all terrain vehicle that Charles Anthony, the older son of Prabhakaran, used.

Because of time constraints, we could not drive the 19 km distance between Fort Frederick and Fort Ostenburg along the road that forms a semicircle around China Bay

Kanniya Hot Wells

From Fort Frederick, we immediately headed to get a feel of the seven Hot Wells of Kanniya—some 10 km northwest of the fort on the arterial road to Anuradhapura. The neighbouring Mari Amman Kovil, which holds the lease for the property, controls and maintains the wells. Locals pay Rs. 10 (US 8 cents) and foreigners Rs. 50 (US 40 cents) to enter the wells and try out the reputed healing powers of the hot water springs.

A high wall bounds the rectangular enclosure, which houses all seven springs. In turn, a dwarf wall encloses each spring to form a well. The temperature of each spring varies slightly. Wells are only about a metre deep, so one can clearly see the bottom. Bathers cannot use soap within the enclosure, but a facility for that is available a few metres away. When the number of users exceeds the number of wells, the users have to quickly move from well to well to get a sample of each. We were satisfied with one bucket of water from each well to wash our feet.

Hundreds of hot springs exist in the world. As I left the premises, the thought occurred to me that the Kanniya Hot Wells could be turned into a money spinning modern spa that would attract wealthy tourists from East Asia.

Gobbling smashing dosa

I was pining for a saapadu (meal) of dosa (fermented crepe/pancake made from rice batter and black lentils) and masala vadai (savoury fritters made of potatoes, lentils and onions) that I had not eaten for more than a decade. I yearned for the genuine food that only an authentic Tamil cook could make. I remembered my years at Lake House in the early ‘60s when I ate dosa for lunch at Tamil boutiques on Hospital Road in Colombo Fort. I thought that Trincomalee would be the ideal place to taste such a delightful meal.
Amal understood my craving pretty well, so he drove us back to the city’s crowded Main Street in the peninsula.

Amal made inquiries from a few locals to decide on the restaurant to go for our saapadu. When we sat down at our table, the manager welcomed us in English and told us the options he could offer. He preferred to serve us the delectable food on platters rather than on banana leaves.

Our party of three thoroughly enjoyed the smashing saapadu. It seemed incredible that the total charged for the food and service came to a mere Rs. 550 (less than $5). Obviously, the good restaurateur did not want to fleece the “foreigners.”

A night by Nilaveli beach

From the city, we had to drive 19 km along the north coast road to check-in for the night at Hotel Coral Bay on Fisherman’s Lane, Nilaveli Beach. We paid Rs.6,600 (about $ 52) for bed and breakfast. Because we were tired, we went straight to bed.

We didn’t notice the beauty of the beach until the morning when we were invited for breakfast in a hut on the beach just a few metres away from our room and the backyard swimming pool. It was still too early for any tourist to come out for a dip in the pool or in the ocean.

Regrettably, we had to leave the Nilaveli Beach quite early to head for Mannar on the west coast. We were not inclined to visit the other scenic and sandy beaches in Trinco—Uppuveli, Marble, Pigeon Island, etc.—either.

 
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